Guri Pannu

The appellant sought to appeal a preliminary order that stayed his arbitration for statutory accident benefits until he attended an examination under oath.

The arbitrator had found that the appellant's failure to attend the examination without reasonable explanation was an abuse of process, justifying a stay under the Statutory Powers Procedure Act.

The Director's Delegate accepted the preliminary appeal, noting that the remedy of a stay for non-attendance at an examination under oath was novel and raised important questions about the limits of an arbitrator's power to fashion remedies not explicitly provided in the Schedule.

The appellant's request to stay the arbitrator's scheduling timeline was denied.

The applicant sought statutory accident benefits following an alleged motor vehicle accident on a public transit bus.

The insurer brought a motion regarding the applicant's failure to attend insurer medical examinations and examinations under oath.

The arbitrator found that the applicant failed to attend medical examinations without a reasonable explanation, rendering him ineligible for benefits during the period of non-compliance.

Furthermore, the applicant failed to attend scheduled examinations under oath.

The arbitrator held that the insurer was not liable to pay benefits during the periods of non-compliance and ordered a stay of the arbitration proceedings until the applicant attends an examination under oath, finding that allowing the hearing to proceed would result in an abuse of process.